Truths and Consequences
by Sherry Marie
Summary: Zoro has been ticking Sanji off even more than he usually does, but Sanji isn’t quite sure why. Then he figures it out. ZxS lovin'.
1. Chapter 1

**_Note: My response to Xparrot's 'The Amazing Chopper's Birthday Challenge' posted in onepieceyaoi LJ. That place is breeding ground for evil ideas._**

Sanji wished more than anything that Zoro would quit looking at him like that. It was really starting to piss him off.

"Sanji-kun, how are you feeling today?"

He was distracted him from all thoughts of the Asshole as he fixed his heart-filled eyes on the petite red head that had appeared beside him. Clasping his hands in happiness, he declared in a bright voice,

"I'm fine, Nami-san! It is impossible to feel ill when in the presence of such beauty. Nami-san is so kind and considerate to ask!"

She graced him with a small smile, but he could see concern creased in the corner of her exquisite eyes. Unable to bear the sight of any discomfort marring the features of The Queen of His Heart, he searched for ways to ease her worries.

"Nami-san, it would be my greatest honor if you would allow me to prepare a delicious and nutritious afternoon snack for you."

"Thank-you, Sanji-kun. But, you know Chopper has told you to take it easy for a while and to stay out of the kitchens until you are a little more healed."

He just barely managed to keep an irritated frown from his face at her innocent reminder. Why the furry little doctor had thought that keeping Sanji from cooking during his recovery would accomplish anything other than depress him was a mystery to the chef. But, he managed to keep his thoughts from Nami-san.

For her, he would be brave. He was sure she expected no less from her Sanji-kun.

After Nami had left him, he spent the afternoon on the front deck. Being barred from the kitchens left him excessively bored these days, so after wandering around as long as he could before his chest started bothering him, he would find himself at the front of the boat, leaning against the railing mindlessly watching the cut of the water. The only good thing in all of this was that ever since Sanji had fallen into this routine, Zoro hardly ever came to the same section of the ship, which suited the blonde just fine, since this meant that he didn't have to watch the other man watch him with THAT look on his face; that look that absolutely pissed Sanji OFF. He wasn't exactly sure what the look meant or anything, he just knew that he hated it and seeing it made him really want to kick the swordsman. Hard.

Not wanting to allow such thoughts to drive him into a dark mood, he searched for means of distraction. Just as he had decided to seek out Nico Robin and spend some time with the wonderfully mysterious female, a voice called for his attention.

"Sanji! You really should be spending more time in bed if you want to heal properly!"

The chef tried to hold his tongue as best he could as he looked at the reindeer frowning up at him. He knew that the resident doctor was only speaking out of concern for a patient, so he strained to control his annoyance at the request.

"I'm fine out here, Chopper. I think the fresh air is doing me a lot of good!"

There was more frowning, as Chopper considered his words. Sanji prayed that the doctor wouldn't turn his suggestion of bed rest into an order. The blonde had spent long weeks after his injury confined to his bed below deck. He couldn't bear the thought of being stuck down there again.

Seeming to take pity on the cook, Chopper finally nodded his head in consent. Sanji nearly melted with relief.

Instead of leaving, or making any attempts to draw Sanji into further conversation, the shortest member of the mis-matched crew continued to stand beside him, looking noticeably agitated. As the silence stretched on and the doctor's fidgeting increased, Sanji tried to prod Chopper into talking about whatever was clearly on his mind.

"Something bothering you, Chopper?"

He smiled slightly as the brown furred cheeks glowed a distinct pink. The sight of the blushing reindeer never failed to charm him.

"Its, just, that, well….have you spoken to Zoro?"

His smile instantly fell. Sanji looked at Chopper as if he had suddenly sprouted horns. Er, more horns. Antlers. Whatever.

"Why in the hell would I do that?"

Chopper gave him an anxious look.

"I was thinking that if you did …it-it may make Zoro feel better."

Utterly bewildered by the words, Sanji just stood there, rather dumbly, to allow them to sink in far enough so that they actually made sense.

"Feel better?" he finally repeatedly, fully aware that he sounded like an utter idiot.

If him talking to Zoro was going to make the other man feel better, Sanji slowly realized, then that meant that right now….

"MotherFUCKER!!!"

Chopper was so startled by the sudden and loud expletive that he stumbled backwards, tripped over his hoofed feet, and fell solidly on his backside.

Sanji paid him little mind as he stomped past the grounded deer. As he angrily searched for the stupidest and most annoying thing to EVER happen to him, memories came rushing back, starting with the moment the crew had decided to step foot on that damned island almost a full month ago.

Within the first half hour of the landing, Sanji had been convinced that he and the crew needed to do nothing more than to turn right around, supplies be damned, get right back on The Going Merry, and get the hell away from that place. The air was silent and full of such…wrongness, that the cook knew no good could come from their visit. He had tried to express his feelings to the group, but Luffy hadn't understood anything other than the thought of adventure to be had while exploring a new place, and as soon as Zoro heard his reservations, the green-haired man had immediately started to taunt Sanji about being 'frightened like a little girl' and urged him to hold Usopp's hand if he was finding the sunny island 'too spooky'. The swordsman was so wrapped up in his own humor that he had missed the deadly glares coming from Nami-san and Robin at the 'little girl' comment. So, after a violent confrontation with the swordsman in order to shut the idiot the hell up, Sanji had closed his mouth on the subject, and loyally followed his friends. And a still snickering Zoro.

All playfulness ended when they finally reached the village. For as long as he lived, Sanji would never forget the sight that greeted them. The entire place was utterly still and seemed to have simply been abandoned long ago. But, as they looked closer, they saw the skeletal remains littering the street.

The group, now somber, warily explored the village. Chopper had quietly muttered something about survivors, but the skeletons were well stripped and sun-bleached, indicating that death had come long ago for these poor souls.

They were cautious as one is when surrounded by death and ignorant of the cause. There were bodies everywhere, and looking closely, it seemed that these people had died quite violently. Many skulls were severely cracked, indicating mortal head trauma. More disturbing were the many bodies where rusted metal knives and swords lay near-by, or in some cases, still protruded. Sanji distinctly remembered the pain in his jaw as it terribly tightened at the sight of the smaller sets of remains; none, it seemed, had been spared in this slaughter.

He had stopped, transfixed, and stared at a pair of mostly intact skeletons, laying together in the dusty street, with bony hands still wrapped tightly around one another's necks in an eternal attempt to choke the long gone life from one another.

"We need to go." and that was Luffy, standing beside him, staring at the pair with him, and as he nodded his head in agreement, was when Zoro started to attack.

Shock froze him for a second when he first saw the glint of hard metal arcing towards him. Luffy was quicker, and grabbed Sanji with a fast rubber arm as he dodged their companion, pulling Sanji with him to safety.

From there, it was chaos and screams. Zoro attacked them all in a violent frenzy; incoherently snarling with each charge. He remembered Luffy shouting his first mate's name in desperate anger, but the green-haired man would not stop, would not respond, would not stop his single-minded dance of violence.

He was wrapped in madness, trying mindlessly to kill however was closest to him. Luck, however, was with them that day, and as a distracted Zoro battled a well-matched Luffy, Chopper, in his four-legged deer form, charged the swordsman's leg with a well-placed sedative syringe gripped between his teeth.

It was a one in a million hit, and the effect was immediate. Their crazed comrade broke free of Luffy at the contact and stumbled back in shock as the fast acting sedative raced through his system.

To this day, Sanji failed to understand the instinct that had him moving towards the other man as Zoro started to fall drugged head first to the ground. But, without thinking he had stepped forward, taking on the other man's weight, and it wasn't until he felt the sharp metal pierce through the center of his chest that he realized that Zoro was not completely sedated. He immediately tasted blood in his mouth as he fell backwards while his body still gripped the sword; he distantly heard his named screamed in a way he had not heard before, and then the darkness was complete.

He had woken weak and thirsty, with a deep pain in his heavily bandaged bare chest. He had at first thought that he was alone in the dark room, until his eye shifted and caught a movement in the darkness. Zoro was standing above him eyeing him warily as the blonde struggle to deeper consciousness. Sanji started to move his parched lips so he could tell the swordsman the he was looking even more stupid than usual, but all that came out as a pathetic dry croak.

Then, the other man was calling for Chopper, calling out that Sanji was awake, and then the room was filled with his nakama, with Chopper in the lead, and Nami right beside him yelling at the crew to MOVE and let Chopper work! He admired the beauty of a masterful Nami-san through heavy eyes, before once again catching sight of Zoro, as the other man quietly backed out of the room. And, it was there, for the very first time, that Sanji had seen THAT LOOK cross the other man's face, and it had pissed him off ever since.

Later, as he lay for weeks healing from his injury, he had been told that after the fight, and while he was unconscious himself, they had to keep Zoro under constant heavy sedation while they searched for an explanation for his sudden violent behavior. Examining Zoro's blood had revealed the toxin almost immediately to Chopper, and then a careful exploration of the island delivered to them the cause. There was a small row of thorny bushes near the village where they had been. Chopper had discovered that the thorns were coated in a sticky substance that proved to be a poison. He explained that if a person happened to brush against the shrubbery and was scratched by the thorns (as Zoro apparently had), then the poison would enter the bloodstream immediately, turning the carrier violent. Once identified, Chopper worked to quickly made an antidote, which was quite effective in curing the infected man. The reindeer actually went into a great more detail then this, detailing the process and exactly which part of the brain is infected, and blah blah blah, but Sanji was doped up on some pretty damn good pain medication while the explanation took place, so he was happy enough just to get the basics of the matter.

That had been weeks ago, and Zoro had continued to avoid him (which was just fine with Sanji, really), and when they did meet, mostly looked at him in that weird way which ticked Sanji off, even if the chef was unable to explain until now why it did just that.

That. Stupid. Son of a Bitch.

Finally, as his chest starting protesting his angry storm across the ship, he found Zoro asleep against the rear railing. Knowing that he would be paying for this action very shortly, but far too angry at this point to care, he landed a hard kick against the sleeping man's chest, sending Zoro tumbling against the deck.

His wounded chest immediately protested, and he hastily grabbed onto the nearby railing to steady himself. He glared at a now awake and sputtering Zoro, who, as soon as he fixed eyes on the shaky blonde, froze, and then had the nerve to give him the LOOK.

Sanji, beyond all levels of normal anger, raised the arm that wasn't keeping him standing upright, and pointed an accusatory finger at the swordsman.

"You," he spat through clenched teeth, "feel _BAD_."

The bastard didn't even try to deny it. He just diverted his eyes and his jaw clenched stubbornly. The Look, though, stayed right where it was.

"Did you know who I was?" Sanji demanded. Zoro looked back at him confused now.

"When you did that. Did you know who you were stabbing?"

"I didn't know anything." Zoro slowly explained, "I didn't even know who I was."

"When I get burned grabbing a hot frying pan, I don't get mad at the frying pan. Get it?"

Zoro's face clearly declared that he didn't get jack.

"YOU were a frying pan! One with too much fish grease and the heat turned on too high! Do you know what I am trying to say? I mean, FISH GREASE, for cryin' out loud! What was I thinking?!?!"

"Um…."

Sanji sighed in exasperation, and leaned his weight more heavily on the railing. He was going to have to go lay down, and soon. But first, he had to find a way to get through to the big stupid asshole.

"If you and I" he began, eyeing the other man carefully, "ever go at it. I mean, really, go at it. You're going to know who I am, I promise you that. Everything else is bullshit, and not even worth thinking about."

Zoro stopped looking confused, and finally met his eyes squarely with understanding. Sanji's chest, no matter how much it was now throbbing, still managed to tighten in a very satisfactory way. This was how they knew one another on their core levels; this odd flare of white hot recognition that they had always shared, that had named them as nakama right from the beginning. Everything else, compared to that, really was bullshit.

"You look like shit, cook. You're not going to faint on the deck, are you?"

The Look was finally gone, and Sanji silently wished it good fucking riddance, but the asshole was still here, getting up from where he himself had been sprawled on the deck. Sanji tried to straighten up at the other's approach, but really didn't have the strength to do it. He had to admit that he had over done it this afternoon. Man, was Chopper ever going to be pissed. And Nami-san! He couldn't help but to feel that he had in some way failed his Goddess with his foolish actions. He would have to find a way to make it up to her.

He was so distracted with his thoughts, that he jumped as Zoro grabbed the bottom of his shirt with one hand and rested his other hand on Sanji's hip, offering, the blonde shakily thought, some additional support as his body continued to weaken. To his embarrassment, he gasped loudly as Zoro yanked his shirt from where it was tucked in his pants, and without a word, pushed his large calloused hand up the front to rest gently on the wrapped bandages.

"You're seeping again, you stupid cook. Chopper is going to be pissed."

Then the hand on his hip tightened, as the other man leaned in very close, put his mouth to Sanji's suspiciously pink ear, and whispered,

"I will always know you, cook. Remember that."

Sanji had no coherent response. What a weird fucking thing to say.

Then he pulled away, slid his hand from beneath Sanji's shirt, and stepped back.

"I'll go get Chopper. Try not to pass out before he gets here. That'll only piss him off more, you know."

And then he left, and Sanji put both hands against the railing, because he really was feeling faint; his legs were barely supporting him, and he stared blindly out to sea.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: I've been suffering from major Writer's Block lately. Gah. Hopefully, this short little chapter will help kick me out of it…**

Sanji wished more than anything that Chopper would quit looking at him like that. It was really starting to piss him off.

Feeling the need to be free of the reindeer, Sanji straightened from his lean against the railing, and started to head to the other hopefully unoccupied side of the ship.

"Where are you going, Sanji?"

His teeth ground at the overly familiar question. In order to check his temper, he had to remind himself that the little doctor was only asking out of concern for his welfare. No other reason. It was rather sweet, actually. And Sanji may not know everything there is to know in the world, but he did know that it was probably wrong to want to brutally choke the life out of sweetness.

So instead, he smiled, and softly replied,

"Just for a little walk."

Chopper eyed him suspiciously, and the chef was momentarily concerned that his molars were in danger of cracking as they ground further under the scrutiny of the doctor.

"Well, don't over do it. Walk slowly; I'll be by to check on your shortly."

"Good to know." Sanji muttered with admiral control, as he started to walk _slowly_ away.

This had been the routine for the past week between them since Sanji had aggravated his still healing wounds during a heated confrontation with the swordsman. Chopper had been upset and more than a little pissed at his carelessness, and since then, had lost all faith that the blond possessed any measure of common sense, and had been watching him like a hawk. Guilt at his own rashness and acknowledgment of the doctor's good intentions were the only things keeping the chef from snapping under the constant and stifling observation.

Zoro, no doubt fearing the little doctor's wrath for his own inadvertent part played in the incursion as the object of Sanji's actions, had been making himself wisely scarce once again. But, this time, there were no looks of guilt schooled on his features whenever he happened to look at Sanji, and for that, the chef was grateful. It was worth suffering Chopper's cloying nagging to have been able to settle that score with the other man. They had said what needed to be said, and all things concerning 'feelings' or any such nonsense had been put to bed.

All seemed right with the world.

"Where's your shadow?"

Sanji started at the unexpected interruption to his thoughts, and looked at Zoro who was propped against a railing in a lazy lean as he gazed across the calm water.

"Fuck off." he replied, "Its your fault that he won't quit following me around, anyway."

Sanji risked a quick glance at the other man to make sure that his words hadn't put the hated look of guilt back on his face, but there was only the usually irritating smirk. It relieved him, but it also made him want to kick the smug head from the broad shoulders.

Yep, it seemed things were finally getting back to normal

Boredom caused Sanji to join Zoro against the rail. The two of them stood together in comfortable silence, not quite ready to disturb the mood of the morning by diving into any more of their usual harsh banter. Besides, any such noise would attract the Wrath of Chopper, and both men were eager to avoid that.

It was an utterly beautiful day, warm and sunny, and the cook smiled in contentment while indulging in the simple pleasure of watching the sun's crystal light points scatter across the deep blue of the water. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, reveling in the peace of the moment; knowing that it were instances like this that had bound his heart forever to the sea.

After a time, his eyes opened, and slid towards the man beside him, who had ceased his own observation of the waves, and was now looking directly at Sanji.

Sanji's eyes widened at what he saw. There was an odd expression on the tanned face, and although it was not the guilty look that had plagued him in recent weeks, it disturbed him just as greatly. Unable to break the gaze, even though he felt more than a little flustered before it, he frantically searched his brain for the meaning behind the expression. It was not one that he had ever seen before.

Zoro, for his part, seemed unconcerned that his observation had been found, and continued to watch the blond with casual intensity. Finally, unable to stand the silent strain, Sanji blurted,

"Why do you look like that?"

Zoro, possibly suspecting this as an opening for an insult about his looks, eyed Sanji warily; uncertain what to say. However, Sanji was still too confused by what he had seen to move on the obvious opening.

After a tense pause stretched between them, Zoro finally gave in and barked,

"What the hell are you talking about, Cook?"

"I'm talking about you, Asshole. You looked . . . soft."

Zoro's face paled to an alarming and unnatural shade of white, before purpling with fury.

"I'm NOT soft! I'm HARD! Do you hear me? I'm as hard as they COME!"

Nami, who had conveniently chosen to walk by the pair at that moment, covered her mouth, but still allowed the sly giggle to be heard. Her eyes brimmed with mirth as she hurried by.

Before Sanji could even think of an adequate reply to that, Chopper, drawn by Zoro's raised voice, came rushing toward the pair.

"What's going on here?!?!" he demanded with irritation and suspicion clear across his features.

Sanji opened his mouth to reply in an attempt to placate Chopper's disapproval, but before he could, Zoro whirled on the small furry doctor.

"I'm hard Chopper! HARD!!!"

The forceful declaration coming so fervently from the imposing figure of the swordsman caused the reindeer's tight features to fall slack, and a deep blush to stain his entire face.

He paused for just a second, before taking two very noticeable steps away from Zoro.

"Er, that's…nice. Sanji, I think that you've been walking around enough. Why don't you go lay down and rest."

The little reindeer stared at the infuriated swordsman for a moment longer, before adding,

"I'll come with you. You know, to make sure you get settled OK. So let's go. Now would be good."

Still distracted by what he had seen, Sanji turned and began to follow Chopper off deck. They had not taken three steps, before Zoro's loud and desperate voice declared,

"And I can PROVE IT!"

At that, Chopper, for once ignoring his own words of caution, grabbed Sanji's hand, and took off at a run, dragging his patient behind him.

_TBC…_


	3. Chapter 3

He was late. He was late and it irritated him. Being late annoyed him as a general rule, but he _despised_ being late in the morning. Being late in the morning meant being late with breakfast, and being late with breakfast meant Luffy following him around his kitchen (which was a whole new level of hatred in itself) and whining at his elbow things like 'Sanji, where's breakfast?', 'Sanji, I'm STARVING because I haven't eaten ALL NIGHT', and 'Sanji, I'm going to_ die_ if I don't get meat right now!'.

So, in order to shut his idiot captain up, he would have to rush the food out onto the table, and the meal would lose all of its presentation, and that would not doubt lower his standing in Nami-san and Robin-chan's lovely captivating eyes.

"Oi, Cook."

Sanji promptly dropped the large copper bowl that he had snatched up almost immediately upon his hasty entrance into the kitchen. He spun around while sucking in a large gasp of air back into his startled lungs.

"What the HELL are you doing here, asshole?" he demanded as he faced the swordsman who was slouched casually in a chair in the still dark corner of the kitchen.

"Sitting."

"What?_ Sitting? _You have to do that _here_?"

Zoro stayed uncharacteristically calm as Sanji shouted at him, and that only made the cook angrier. The green-haired man kept his eyes on Sanji as he carelessly gestured around.

"There are chairs here."

Sanji knew that he was just wasting even more time fooling around with the moss-brained moron, so he bit back another angry retort and bent down to pick up the dropped bowl. When he straightened back up, he noticed that Zoro was still staring at him. The blonde found it rather unnerving.

"What the fuck are you looking at?" he demanded.

"Nothing, really. I was just thinking."

There was a long pause.

"You can close your mouth, you bastard cook!"

Sanji's smirk was a far cry from an apology as he leaned his hip against the counter, deciding to enjoy the show now that he finally managed to bait a normal reaction from the other man.

"Sorry, I'm just not use to seeing you actually trying to use your shitty brains, asshole. It caught me off guard."

His casual stance tensed slightly as he prepared himself in case the other man attacked. But the violence never came, and Sanji was perplexed to observe that the calm considering expression remained fixed on the other man's face.

"You have a nasty mouth, Cook."

"So? The fuck you care?"

"I don't. I was just commenting."

Zoro stared at him for a moment before adding,

" It doesn't look that way, you know."

Sanji looked at him in confusion.

"My mouth?"

Zoro rolled his eyes.

"Yes, asshole. Your mouth."

"Wh-uh, what the–."

Now it was Zoro's turn to smirk as the chef floundered for the words to respond to the ridiculous statement, which only pissed Sanji off more. If there was one thing in life that Sanji wouldn't stand for, it was letting the green-haired idiot get the best of him. To hide his growing discomfort, he pulled his cigarettes from out of his breast pocket, and lit a stick. After taking a long drag, Sanji glared at the other man who's eyes were still fixed on him with annoying intensity.

"So, what does my mouth look like, asshole?" he challenged, not knowing what else to do.

The smirk faded but the dark eyes never left his face. After about a minute of twisting silence, the cook finally gave in and turned around, away from the asshole and his weird unsettling mood, and cursed himself up and down as he felt heat touch his face.

"I have to make breakfast. Get the fuck out."

He was feeling so out of sorts from the odd tones of the conversation, that he barely jumped when an insistent hand pulled at his elbow. His eyes widened in question and ill ease when the swordsman tugged him around to stand them chest to chest. Zoro's hip bumping his own finally broke him out of his startled trance, and he put his hands against the other man's shoulders to shove him away.

All action stopped when Zoro reached out and plucked the still burning cigarette from between his lips. Traces of smoke curled faintly from the corner of his mouth when Zoro muttered, "Just..." and nothing else before kissing him.

Light pressure, enough to stun him, and then a curious tongue dragging across his lower lip. It was over as quickly as it had started, and the swordsman took a step back, eyeing him carefully.

There was no way for Sanji to tell, not as his mind sputtered and tripped, how long he stood there just gaping at the other man.

"You look like an idiot, you stupid cook."

That snapped him out of his shock just enough for him to close his slack mouth. The first coherent response that popped in his head was '_Well you ARE an idiot!_', but he didn't say that, and he felt as if he should attack the other man over what had just happened, but his feet didn't move and the rage wouldn't come.

So instead he said, "I'm not a girl." and it sounded weak and stupid even to him.

Zoro finally stopped looking at him, and turned to the side. He shook his head and smiled, but there was no humor touching the dark eyes.

"Yeah. No fucking kidding."

The sun had just broken over the eastern horizon, and yellow strings of light were beginning to zig zag their way into the tense atmosphere of the kitchen.

"Get out."

Sanji hardly realized that he was the one who had spoken as his voice sounded peculiar and distant to his ear. And as strange as the entire morning had been, it was the sight of Zoro quietly turning and doing as he was told that finally drew all strength from the cook's body, and dumped him numbly into a nearby chair.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

_Authors Note:_ _Greetings, you lovely patient people. This next chapter was running a little long, so I decided to split it into two. Which means, the next part should be up soon, as oppose to the usual seven or eight year stretch that I usually place between updates. Thanks so much to everyone who is sticking through on this one!_!

"Sanji-san?"

Sanji looked over and smiled at the young lady who appeared beside him.

"Yes, Cenna-chan?"

"I made this for you."

The nine-year old looked up at Sanji shyly though dark lashes, as she held out the paper for him to take. Sanji's smile grew as he looked at the well drawn picture. It was a beautifully detailed recreation of the lower beach. In the water, sat The Going Merry, exactly as it was anchored now, and him and his crew were drawn on the sand walking toward the village. It was no doubt the very first glimpse that Cenna had of The Straw Hat Pirates when the crew had arrived more than a week ago.

"This is absolutely beautiful, Cenna-chan. You are very talented."

Her face flushed a delightful shade, and she looked down modestly. Cenna was a quiet, private, young girl, who had only watched the arrival of the pirates from a careful distance for the first few days that they had been here. But, sure enough, the colorful antics of the crew quickly drew even her attention, and soon her curiosity had gotten the better of her, and she ventured from her shell to meet them.

It had been a relatively quiet stay, and the people of this small secluded village had been more than kind to them once they realized that Luffy's crew weren't intending on raiding them for what little possessions they had. It was a nice break after being out at sea for so long, and they were able to replenish a good portion of their supplies.

Cenna smiled at him once more, before wandering off to a cluster of shady trees a short distance away. The girl had developed a bit of a crush on the blonde cook, and although she was far too young to attract his interest in that way, Sanji had been charmed at the development. Seeing a few pair of eyes follow the girl's movement across the square, the pirate knew that she was already garnishing attention from some of the local village boys. Not that any of them, in Sanji's mind, were good enough for her notice. No, Cenna-chan would have to have more selected taste than that if she wanted to find someone one day worthy of her.

"Do you ever think about having kids?"

Zoro had appeared at his shoulder, and although he was speaking to Sanji, his eyes were fixed elsewhere. Sanji wasn't sure if he was more startled by the question, or the fact that Zoro had suddenly started to speak to him again. It had been almost three weeks since that awful strange encounter in his kitchen, and since then, the two men had barely said more than two words to one another.

"Why would you ask me something like that?"

"I dunno. You seem to like them."

"What's not to like about them?"

Zoro looked uncomfortably at Cenna who was drawing peacefully under a shady tree.

"They're just . . . weird."

Sanji snorted.

"No, they're children. _You're_ weird."

"So you want to have some, then."

Sanji had no idea why Zoro kept pressing the point. It was starting to piss him off.

"I honestly have no idea. Maybe I will, maybe I won't. I really haven't given it much thought. There are other things that are more important to me right now."

"Like finding All Blue?"

Sanji looked up sharply, but found no traces of mockery on Zoro's face.

"Yeah, like that."

Zoro nodded, and Sanji felt something uncurl warm and loose inside his chest at the simplicity of such understanding.

"How about you, Seaweed Head? You ever think about the possibility of having a little cluster of ugly dim-witted prodigies underfoot?"

"Absolutely not. I'm going to be the best swordsman in the world. I can't have any kids."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Its just the way it is. Mihawk doesn't have any kids."

"Well, maybe you should go have some kids with Mihawk."

Zoro's body instantly tensed, and he looked away. Sanji suddenly remembered the whole reason that he had been avoiding the swordsman's company, and looked uncomfortably at the ground. After a few minutes of awkward silence, the other man walked away, and Sanji was grateful for the solitude.

"Sanji-kun?"

His dark thoughts all but left him as he looked up to find Nami standing beside him. He silently cursed Zoro, since he knew it to be the distraction of the swordsman that had prevented him from sensing Nami's lovely approach.

"Yes, Nami-san? What can I do for you? Please ask anything of me at all. Anything that would make you happy."

She looked over his shoulder for a moment, before directing her gaze on him once again. She seemed to have come to some sort of decision at that moment.

"Sanji-kun, can we talk for a minute?"

Sanji's heart threatened to leap from his chest at the request.

"Of course, Nami-san! We can talk about anything you want to, for as long as you would like! Let us talk in the language of lov—"

"Why don't we take a walk?"

His eyes glowed hearts as they started to walk together down towards the beach. He breathed deep, and was tantalized by the sweet intoxicating scent of her perfume. His mind raced as he tried to guess what His Goddess may want to talk about it. Had she finally decided to stop playing her attractively infuriating little game of pretending that she didn't want him? Perhaps her longing had grown too strong, and she could no longer bear turning him awa-

"I wanted to talk about you and Zoro."

Sanji tripped clumsily on the sand.

"Are you alright?" she asked as he stood and hastily brushed the sand from his knees.

"Er, yes, I'm fine, Nami-san. Its adorable of you to ask."

"Oh. Ok. Like I was saying, I wanted to talk to you about Zo—"

"Nami-san! I beg you, isn't there a more pleasant topic we can talk about? Like, perhaps, how your longing has gro—"

"No, Sanji-kun. I want to talk about you and Zoro." she said firmly.

Sanji felt deflated, and it was odd for him to feel so low in Nami's charming presence.

"Of course, if you wish."

"I do. I want to know what's going on between the two of you."

"NOTHING! There is absolutely NOTHING at ALL going on between the two of us!"

Nami looked shocked, and horrified, Sanji realized that he had just screamed at his beautiful navigator. He instantly fell back on his knees, and dropped his head in his hands in shame.

"Naaaami-sannnnn! Please forgive me!" he wailed.

"Yes, yes, its perfectly all right, Sanji-kun." she said as she tried tugging him to his feet. "Just please get up. Now."

It was the thrilling note of command that snapped him from his bout of self-loathing and despair, and he stood up to face her shamefully.

"Nami-san! That was completely inexcusable! Please tell me how I can make up to you my terrible brutish behavior, and once again bathe myself in the exhilarating light of your pleasure."

"Er…"

"Anything! Anything at all!"

"Well, why don't you start by answering my question."

Sanji paused, and was dazzled and defeated by the ravishing look of determination in her eyes.

"Oh, well, what do you mean, Nami-san?"

""I'm asking you to explain to me why things are so strained between you and Zoro. On a ship as small as ours, its not going to go unnoticed. Even Luffy has started to question."

"Luffy?"

She nodded.

Sanji took a long drag on his cigarette and tried to organize his thoughts. How could he explain the reason for the strain between him and the Asshole without revealing the sordid details of the encounter? The last thing he wanted to do was have her so disgusted with what happened in the kitchen when he was mauled by the ape-like moss-brained idiot, that she would be unable to take meals in that room. But, then again, if she was too disturbed to enter the kitchens, then that would mean that Sanji would have to make special trips in order to bring her her meals. Perhaps she would like a special table set up on the rear deck, where the two of them could dine together away from prying eyes (because he could not bear the thought of her having to eat alone merely because the swordsman had developed some sort of weird uncontrollable groping issue). Or, perhaps, she would feel more comfortable in her own cabin. _Maybe,_ she would like to have meals served to her in bed—

"Sanji-kun? You're drooling around your cigarette. And you're stalling."

"Oh, sorry, Nami-san. Um, I'm not really sure how to explain. The idiot and I merely had a disagreement. It happens all the time, I assure you."

"Sanji-kun, I have seen arguments between you and Zoro. There is screaming and fighting, and stuff gets broken. Lots of stuff. Sometimes expensive stuff."

Sanji had the good grace to look down and blush.

"But, this is different. I—I don't like to see a rift in my nakama."

Sanji looked up at that, and Nami looked so sincere, that it nearly broke his heart. She smiled at him a little sadly.

"Please, whatever is going on, work it out in whatever way you have to. There are things more important than arguments."

"Of course, Nami-san. Your wisdom makes you even more enchanting."

She giggled softly, and rolled her eyes. Then, her expression turned stern.

"And, when you finally do work this out between you two, just remember that you'll have to pay triple on whatever gets broken!"

"Yes, Nami-san!"

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

_This is for Nami-san. It would be wrong to fail her. This is for Nami-san. It would be wrong to fail her. _

Sanji kept the mantra repeating in his head as he headed across the ship in search of Zoro. They had been at sea for two days since departing from Cenna's village, and it had taken the cook all this time to get up the nerve to attempt to follow through on his promise that he had made to Nami of working things out with the swordsman.

What really drove him absolutely crazy was that this whole mess wasn't even his fault! It was the green-headed idiot's fault, yet here he was, being the better man (as usual), and trying to fix this, well, whatever this was.

He finally found the swordsman sitting alone in one of the more secluded sections of the deck. He was resting against the railing with his eyes closed, but Sanji could tell that he was not asleep. Without invitation, the cook sat down beside him.

"Hey Asshole, I know you aren't sleeping."

For a moment there was no reaction, then Zoro opened his eyes to glare at the blonde.

"Maybe I could be, if you would leave me the hell alone."

"You sleep all goddamn day, you can stay awake for a few minutes while I talk to you."

Zoro raised an eyebrow.

"You wanna talk?"

Sanji shrugged, and then lit a cigarette to try to cover some of his nervousness. His plan, such as it was, only went as far as cornering the other man so they could try and resolve this mess. He never really thought through the actual conversation.

"So?"

"Huh?"

The swordsman rolled his eyes, and looked at him carefully.

"What do you want to talk about?"

Sanji spoke directly to his own knee caps.

"You know. The thing."

Zoro said nothing, and Sanji knew that if the idiot even attempted to pretend that he didn't understand what he was referring to, then he was going to have to kill him.

"What about it?"

Sanji looked up at the bored tone in Zoro's voice. The other man was relaxed once again, with his head tilted back and both eyes closed.

"Wh—" 

"Drop it, Cook. It was nothing. I just wanted to test something out. Are you so hard up for action that you have to go and make a big deal out of a little something like that?"

Sanji was absolutely stunned.

"No big deal?" he repeated dumbly.

Zoro snorted in annoyance, and his frown tightened.

"Will you just fuck off and let me get some sleep?"

Sanji continued to sit there in momentary shocked silence. _A test?_

"A test?"

"Jesus." Zoro muttered under his breath.

Before he knew fully what he was doing, he had pulled himself to his knees, and had shifted so he was directly in front of the swordsman. The other man's eyes flew open when Sanji grabbed two fists full of Zoro's shirt and yanked. A surprised swordsman pitched forward far enough that the blonde was able to press their lips together.

There. Now they were even. If the asshole thought he could just walk up and molest him anytime the whim hit him, then he had another thing coming. A 'test' indeed. Well, Sanji could perform his own little 'test'. And his 'test' told him that kissing the stiff unresponsive mouth of the other man was a lot like kissing sandpaper. He pulled back with a smug little grin.

"Huh. It's like kissing a big ugly sheet of sandpa—"

But, he never got to finish the statement, before two large arms suddenly snaked around his waist, and pulled him forward until he was flush against Zoro's chest. Then, his mouth, which was slightly open in pure shock at the quick unexpected movement, was busy once again as lips pressed against his, and a slick tongue took advantage of the small gape and pushed inside.

Sanji quickly released the hold he had on Zoro's shirt. But, before he could start to push against the other man to get loose, the arms around his waist tightened until he was pressed even _closer_ against the unyielding body beneath him.

His struggles began to slow somewhat, but Sanji was unsure if this was due to the reduction of air he was able to draw, or from the way the strong tongue was now stroking against the top pallet of his mouth. He had never felt a sensation quite like that before, and he didn't _hate_ it, in fact, his body seemed to enjoy it quite a bit, as it completely betrayed his dignity and relaxed into a drape across the other man.

After a time, Zoro, pulled away slightly, and Sanji, utterly dazed by what had just occurred, did nothing but spend moments sucking in large gasps of air. He had no clue where his cigarette had gone. He supposed he ought to be happy he wasn't currently on fire.

"Is this pity?"

Sanji eyes were half-closed, and he barely noticed, much less comprehend, the soft rough words that were spoken. The only thing that he understood at that moment was that he wanted Zoro to shut the fuck up, so they could get back to the damn test. Aggravated, he started to lean forward, and was startled to feel the arms around his waist loosen, and then he was being shoved harshly back.

He landed with a jolt straight on his ass, but was able to throw out his hands behind him to prevent himself from toppling completely over. The other man was glaring at him with an expression that was pure venom.

"Wh—"

"What the fuck is wrong with you, Cook?"

Sanji blinked.

"What?"

"What the _hell_ was that, Asshole?" Zoro demanded in a deadly tone.

Sanji had never felt more unbalanced in his entire life. He gaped at the swordsman, who was still glaring at him with something that closely resembled hatred. Then, his befuddlement receded somewhat, and was replaced by frustrated anger.

"What the fuck are you talking about? _You_ kissed _me_ first!"

"So, this is some sort of payback?"

The swordsman's tone was flat and his eyes were cold and distant.

"Payb- YOU are the biggest dumbest bastard in the whole fucking world!"

Zoro raised an eyebrow.

"So it wasn't payback? You _wanted_ to kiss me?"

Sanji glared and didn't respond. He didn't know how to. This was all happening so weird and so fast. He had no idea what he was feeling.

"Can I fuck you?"

Sanji flinched at the blunt question which caused Zoro to smile nastily.

"Is that a no? Do you want to fuck me, instead? Is that more what you're thinking?"

"I'm not—" 

"Where do you think this going to lead, you idiot cook? Do you think this is all some sort of _joke_?" Zoro's voice rose with anger.

"Do you see me laughing, Asshole?" Sanji exploded, "And I certainly wasn't laughing before, but, of course, that could have had a lot to do with the fact that our _tongues_ were down each other throats!"

"So what the hell are you saying? That you want me?"

"I'm saying that I DON'T KNOW! Jesus fucking Christ, can't you give me a little time to figure it out? You can't just out of the blue jump up and kiss me one day, and then ask to fuck me the next! I had no clue, _none_, that this was coming, and you expect me to instantly know what to do. Well, I don't _fucking_ know what to do, OK? I don't _fucking_ know what I want. Do you?"

"Yes."

The biting anger was gone from the swordsman's voice, and the dark eyes regarded him with intensity and searing decision. The tension, that had been thick between them, shifted, as if pulled taunt by the weight of honest confession.

Sanji wanted to go running from the face of Zoro's calm determined want, and he was ashamed of himself at such fleeting cowardice.

"What do you want from me?" he asked instead, and there was sadness, confusion, and just the slightest trace of hope shading the words.

Zoro stared at him for a moment, and then sighed deeply.

"Whatever –"

He stopped, and looked angrily to the side.

_So this is what you look like when you're afraid. . . _

"Whatever you're willing to give."

Sanji closed his eyes against the tight quiet words. This was all too much for him. This was too much for him to take, to be offered, to wonder if he really wanted.

"I don't know that. I don't think I know anything."

He laughed humorously at himself. Zoro was still staring quietly at the deck beside him, and Sanji had never seen him look as shut-down as he did at that moment.

"But let me figure it out. I have to."

TBC. . .


	6. Chapter 6

Sanji honestly wasn't certain that he could do this. He shook his head at the absurdity of the situation; at his own absurdity, and continued to pace. God, he was an idiot.

No, he wasn't the idiot; the idiot swordsman was the idiot and Sanji was the one suffering from the force of that idiocy. Goddamn idiot asshole.

Frustrated and irritable, he lit another cigarette hoping that the nicotine would calm him. The coating of old ash beneath his feet was evidence to the contrary, but Sanji didn't know what else to try. He had been on edge ever since his gigantic failure at resolving the rift between him and the swordsman a week earlier. A large part of him wished like hell that he had never attempted to work things out. But, Nami-san had requested it, and he would never deny his Angel anything.

He had talked to Zoro and they had argued, which was really no surprise. Zoro had acted like an asshole, which again, was really no surprise. Then, Sanji had kissed him – just to prove a point!- and then Zoro had kissed him back and, well, he hadn't hated it. _That_ was the surprise.

And then Zoro had freaked out, which freaked Sanji out, especially when Zoro started to sort of admit things; things that the cook wasn't really ready to hear. So, now there appeared to be stuff like _emotion_ between the two of them, that kind of needed to be sorted out. And since the swordsman was generally about as communicative as a brick, it was up to Sanji to get this resolved. So, he had an idea. A really really stupid idea.

Sanji had other stupid ideas in his life. For example, when he was fifteen years old, he had made a deal with Carne that he would do his laundry for a month if the other chef would cover for him while he sneaked out to spend some time with a girl. However, the first time he went to do the wash, the over-powering stench and assorted … stains on the clothing was enough to turn his stomach so much that he wound up feeling too ill to make the date with the pretty young lady. But, this idea, the one he had cooked up this morning, was most likely going to top that in sheer stupidity.

He was going to ask Zoro out on a date.

The crew was getting ready to dock at a fairly busy and pleasant-looking town, so the opportunity was there to spend some time with the other man away from the rest of the crew to see if they could figure this out, before the rift between them threatened their standing as nakama. No matter what else happened, that was something that had to stay intact.

Asking another man to spend time with him was not something which the cook had any experience. Sure, he had hung around with male members of the crew when they had gone into towns in the past, but he had always made it perfectly clear that if a pretty lady crossed his path and the scent of romance was in the air (as it usually was when pretty ladies crossed his path), then they were to leave him immediately so he could make his move. This time, however, any romance that was to be found was to be found with Zoro, and -- and as soon as the words 'Zoro' and 'romance' connected together in Sanji's head, he started to feel as ill as when he had tried to launder Carne's lucky pink thong.

There was no way this was going to work.

"You better be planning on cleaning up all of that disgusting ash, Shitty Cook."

Sanji turned and glared at the object of his musings. No way _in hell_ was this going to work.

"What's it to you?" he shot back before purposely taking a long drag on his cigarette and watching the ashes fall to the deck.

"I nap there, Fucker, and I don't want to have to lay in your filth."

"How the hell was I suppose to know that? You nap all over the goddamn ship!"

Zoro stepped closer with an angry scowl. Sanji stood his ground.

"Well, this is the spot that I like best, so don't fuck it up."

With everything that he had been going through lately, he found that he didn't have the energy to devote to a full-fledge battle with the swordsman over such a stupid topic. So, instead of answering, he plucked the almost finished stick from his mouth and bent to grind the lit end against the bottom of his shoe.

"So, you want to hang out in town with me today?" He asked this in a rush, before he stood up completely to face the other man, just in case he did something girly. Like blush.

Zoro merely grunted. Sanji couldn't tell if that was a yes grunt or a no grunt, since he had apparently misplaced his Grunts-to-English dictionary! Couldn't the dickweed open his goddamn mouth and respond like a normal human being? Grunty caveman-like asshole. Without making eye contact, Sanji straightened and turned from the other man.

"You know what? Do whatever the fuck you want to. I really don't have time for your bullshit."

He walked away without waiting for a response. He had reached the end of the very short rope that he was on with the swordsman. He was completely pissed that even though Zoro had been the one to start this whole fucking mess that morning by kissing him out of nowhere, it had been Sanji who had been making the effort ever since to right things between them. The infuriating son-of-a-bitch hadn't done anything other than _be_ an infuriating son-of-a-bitch, something that he excelled at, and Sanji was quite frankly sick of taking his shit. Let the asshole kiss and grunt at whoever the hell he wanted to, as long as he stopped doing it to him. He was finished with the whole stupid thing.

--------

The town had been as pleasant as it had looked, and they were lucky enough to have landed on a day where the annual harvest festival was occurring. There had been plenty of good food, good wine, and friendly faces throughout the day, not to mention plenty of pretty young girls. Sanji had spent most of the day between sampling some of the local cuisine for new recipes and charming the local ladies into spending some time with him.

Towards the end of the day, he had wandered off alone. There was a fireworks display planned for after dark, and even though he had first thought to seek out his nakama to watch the show with them, he had ultimately decided to strike out on his own for some privacy. It wasn't as if he was hiding from Zoro – he wasn't- but he didn't particularly wish to end the day by having to look at the swordsman's ugly face either.

Just as the show had finally gotten underway and Sanji was able to distract himself from any darker thoughts by admiring the flare of the impressive display, he heard steps approaching. Not having to look up to see who it was, Sanji frowned as Zoro sat down beside him. He had chosen his spot behind the seclude back of the old brick building in order to have some privacy, and he had no idea how the other man had managed to find him.

"You're like a girl."

Sanji was startled by the blunt words, and then a strange sense of calm rage washed over him as their meaning registered. He carefully extinguished his cigarette before speaking in a cool even tone.

"I will kill you by the light of these beautiful fireworks, asshole."

"Walking away! What the fuck?" It was clear that the swordsman was ignoring his threat, if he had even heard it in the first place. "I mean, just wait a goddamn minute. Or better yet, shut up! Why do you have to talk? What's with the talking? It's a motherfucking waste of time. I hate it!"

With that Zoro crossed his arms and stared up into the sky towards the illuminating flash of the fireworks. It was clear from his body language that the swordsman had said what he had come to say, and now it was up to Sanji to sort through the mess of disjointed babble to work out the meaning.

"Are you talking about earlier?"

Zoro had the goddamn nerve to look at Sanji like _he_ was the dim-wit.

"Yes. Shitty. Cook."

"You-you-FUCK YOU!" Sanji exploded. This was just all too much. "You know what? You started this whole fucking mess and I've been the one trying to fix it. You have a lot of goddamn nerve getting all pissed at me."

"There's nothing to fix."

Sanji stared wordlessly at the other man, who was looking once again at the colorful explosions overhead.

"Listen, Cook. This isn't your problem, OK? Just leave it alone and I'll get over it."

"You will?"

Sanji both sounded and felt oddly offended. Zoro shot him a dirty look.

"Yes. I will. So leave it alone."

The swordsman, clearly considering the conversation done with, shut his eyes and leaned back against the side of the building. Sanji, not knowing what else to do, leaned back as well. This thing, whatever it was, was getting weirder and weirder. Zoro was obviously offering him an out, and was even trying to do it in a civil way. Or, as close to 'civil' as the swordsman was capable of achieving. The smart thing to do would be to take it, bury whatever what ifs and maybes that the last few weeks had turned up inside him, and to move on. But, then again, the best way to live life was not always the smart way. He had learned that the day a cannon ball dropped through the roof of his first real home.

"What if I don't want to leave it alone?"

The other man's eyes remained close, yet his entire body seemed to tense at the cook's question. When he remained silent and Sanji realized that he was being ignored, the blonde's irritation merely fueled his honesty.

"What if I kinda liked it?" he challenged.

At that, Zoro snorted in annoyance as his eyes snapped open.

"You're such a fucker. An absolute pain in the ass." The words were sharp and angry.

"Well so are you! You started this whole fucking thing."

"What? Are you six?" Zoro sneered.

"What? Are you _afraid_?"

The other man was on his knees in an instant reaching out, grabbing Sanji by both arms, and hauling him close. Deep anger burned in his eyes as he glared at the chef.

"I'm not fucking afraid of you."

Sanji wet his lips but did not drop the intense eye contact.

"I didn't think you were, asshole." He responded in a careful precise tone. "I think that you're afraid of _you_."

They stared at each other in tense silence and the hands gripping Sanji tightened. From a distance, he could hear the cheering from the gathered crowd as they responded to the show's finale, but as close as he was to Zoro, separated only by the last few threads of reservation and rigid tension, he could offer them, offer the world outside of this moment, only the barest recognition. This was the point where answers proceeded questions, and the maybes of the heart stood solid and real. It was a point where things changed, for better or for worse; the deep slick kiss of the inevitable.

His heart kicked up and his breathing felt warm and heavy. The answering pants that teased past his mouth made him feel light-headed and restless. And just a little bit reckless.

"Are you going to knock me on my ass again?" he asked.

"Do you want me to?" Zoro's word were low and his eyes were dark and heated.

Sanji chuckled and one of them, or both, started to lean forward.

"Maybe."

**THE END**

**(most likely. possibly. I just don't know anymore!)**


End file.
